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Sukumaran's final paintings back in Aust

Bali Nine ringleader Myuran Sukumaran's paintings from death row have arrived back in Australia, more than 10 months after he was executed in Indonesia.

Two paintings by Myuran Sukumaran
Two paintings by Myuran Sukumaran Source: AAP

The final paintings by Bali Nine ringleader Myuran Sukumaran have arrived back in Australia, almost a year after his execution in Indonesia.

The delivery of death row artworks was announced on social media on Friday afternoon by Sukumaran's mentor and friend, Sydney artist Ben Quilty.

The Archibald winner posted a photo of wooden boxes and wrapped canvases to Facebook with the caption: "Myu's paintings safely and finally back in Australia".

It comes more than 10 months after Sukumaran and fellow convicted Bali Nine drug smuggler, Andrew Chan, were executed by firing squad on Indonesia's Nusakambangan island on April 29, 2015.

The western Sydney pair were arrested in 2005 for attempting to smuggle heroin out of Bali and spent the next decade in Kerobokan Prison.

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They were dubbed the 'godfather' and the 'enforcer' of the nine-person drug syndicate.

One of Sukumaran's lawyers reached out to Quilty in 2012 after his imprisoned client expressed a desire to learn how to paint.

With the artist's guidance, Sukumaran began teaching classes to rehabilitate other inmates.

He was awarded an associate degree in fine arts from Curtin University just months before his death.

Some of his most haunting works are believed to be among the cargo, including one of the Indonesian flag dripping with blood and a self-portrait with a gaping hole in his chest where his heart should be.

The oil painting was transported off the island, still wet, by his lawyer Julian McMahon during a three-hour visit at Besi Prison just days before Sukumaran's death.

A month earlier, Sukumaran revealed a painting of Indonesian President Joko Widodo with the inscription "People can change" after his final plea for clemency was denied.

The 34-year-old's paintings became noticeably darker as his execution date drew near.

It is not yet known whether they will be exhibited.


2 min read

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Source: AAP



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